This is a transcendent doctrine of the gospel essential for us all to understand and value. Families are eternal. Everything in the kingdom of God points to the family, in the past as well as the future. This work, the sealing of husband and wife and families for time and all eternity, is essential in order that families be forever. This work must precede the Second Coming. And if the turning of the hearts of the children to their fathers has not occurred, “the whole earth would be utterly wasted at His coming” (D&C 2:3). The stories are legion of how the Lord has inspired people, through the Holy Ghost, to do their family history, genealogical research, and temple work. Concerning the historical significance of the visit of Elijah in the latter days, Elder LeGrand Richards has said:
What evidence have we that the promise of Malachi has been fulfilled? If Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery had spoken a falsehood when they said Elijah came to them, then the hearts of the children could not have turned to their fathers. No one else has claimed that Elijah committed these keys to him. The hearts of the children were not turned to their fathers before the proclamation by Joseph and Oliver.
It is well to know in this connection that in 1836 there were no genealogical societies in this land or in Europe. Save for the keeping of pedigrees of royal and noble families, very little attention was being paid to the records of the dead in any Christian country. The first organized effort to collect and file genealogies of the common people was made shortly after the coming of Elijah. This was the formation of The New England Historic and Genealogical Society. In 1844, this society was incorporated. Its chief purpose is to gather and publish data in relation to American Families. The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society was incorporated in 1869. The Pennsylvania Genealogical Society, the Maine Genealogical Society, together with other like societies in Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Connecticut and most of the other states of the Union, have all been organized since 1836. A great many societies have also been organized in Great Britain and on the continent of Europe, but all of them since the keys of the Priesthood were returned to the earth which planted in the hearts of the children the promises made to their fathers. (Joseph Fielding Smith, The Way to Perfection, pp. 168–69)
Hundreds of thousands [today, millions] of genealogical records have been compiled. The spirit of turning the hearts of the children to their fathers has swept the whole earth since Elijah came to accomplish his promised mission. While this spirit cannot be seen, the operation thereof has touched the hearts of men and women the world over. They do not know why they are compiling genealogical records, yet this work has made rapid strides—really it is “a marvelous work and a wonder” in and of itself (A Marvelous Work and a Wonder, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1950, 184–85). (Ed J. Pinegar)
The turning of the hearts of fathers and children is all about family, on both sides of the veil. Let us do all in our power to bless and strengthen each other within the family unit. It cannot be a passing and casual consideration, but one in which time and effort are willingly invested in the spirit of sacrifice and charity. Planning is vital in counseling together as parents and as family members to strengthen each other and help make our families unified. Let us remember that agreed-upon values bring unity to the family. The work for our kindred dead is part of being perfected (see D&C 128:15). President Hinckley reminds us, “This vicarious work constitutes an unprecedented labor of love on the part of the living in behalf of the dead. It makes necessary a vast undertaking of genealogical research to find and identify those who have gone before” (Be Thou an Example [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1981], 131). Are our hearts turned toward our living family to bless and serve each other? Do we have a plan to seek after our kindred dead and do their vicarious work in the temple?